Mercedes-Benz Air Bags: Occupant Classification

Mercedes-Benz is recalling about 345 vehicles over a problem with the air bags. If a child seat is in the front seat and the passenger air bag is not deactivated, in the event of a crash, it can increase the risk of injury.

Campaign
18V515000
Manufacturer
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC.
Reported
3 August 2018
Vehicles
345
Built between
Jul 2017 – Apr 2018
Models
5
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
26 November 2018
Repaired
80%
Unrepaired
69

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between July 2017 and April 2018. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 2018 Mercedes-Benz AMG E63SBuilt July 2017 to April 2018
  • 2019 Mercedes-Benz CLS 450Built July 2017 to April 2018
  • 2018 Mercedes-Benz E 300Built July 2017 to April 2018
  • 2018 Mercedes-Benz E 400Built July 2017 to April 2018
  • 2018 Mercedes-Benz E43 AMGBuilt July 2017 to April 2018

Repair progress

69 of 345 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q1 2020.

80% repaired — 276 of 345 reported

Manufacturers file these figures with NHTSA each quarter. Vehicles the manufacturer could not trace, or that have been scrapped or exported, are counted separately and are not included in the unrepaired figure.

What the defect is

Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2018 Mercedes-Benz E300, E300 4Matic, E43 AMG 4Matic, E400 4Matic, E63S AMG 4Matic+, and 2019 CLS450 4Matic vehicles. The Occupant Classification System (OCS) may not be properly calibrated, resulting in the front passenger air bag not being deactivated if a child seat is in the front seat.

What could happen

If a child seat is in the front seat and the passenger air bag is not deactivated, in the event of a crash, it can increase the risk of injury.

What gets fixed

MBUSA will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger seat cushion, free of charge. The recall began November 26, 2018.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtJuly 2017 to April 2018
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA3 August 2018
  3. Owners notified26 November 2018
  4. Latest repair reportQ1 2020 — 80% repaired

Your rights

A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.

That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 3 August 2018.

To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.

Manufacturer contact

Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372.

Official source

Manufacturer's recall number
2018100004
Recalling manufacturer
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC.
Recall initiated by
MFR

Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

Additional notes

Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.

Check your own vehicle

This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.

A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.

Same component

Same brand